Autoblog

2013 Lexus ES350

Michael Harley — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Lexus, New Car Reviews, Luxury

Finally Saying Goodbye To Its Camry Roots

In its equivalent world of breakfast foods, the Lexus ES350 is unquestionably the pancake. While its siblings may offer more interesting textures, flavors and consistencies - a generally more exciting culinary experience - the four-door ES is designed with 'indistinct' as its middle name. Its objective is to please just about every entry-level luxury buyer once it ends up on their plate.

Even after a complete redesign for the 2013 model year, the sixth-generation Lexus ES350 emerges every bit as family-friendly and non-polarizing as its predecessors. It is the everyman's luxury sedan, offering attractive pricing and a satisfying fill of amenities and features with the sweetness of a long warranty and polished customer service to back things up.

As a result of its overall wholesomeness and demeanor, the ES350 sells like hotcakes, too. Last year, 56,158 customers took delivery, thus allowing the five-passenger sedan to continue its reign as the highest sales volume Lexus passenger car (it outsells the bigger LS nearly seven-to-one).

To learn more about the all-new ES, and take our own taste of its goodness, we recently spent a week with the midsize luxury sedan in Southern California.

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2013 Lexus ES350 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 24 Jan 2013 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2013 Lexus ES earns five stars from NHTSA

Zach Bowman — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 08:27:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Government/Legal, Safety, Lexus, Luxury

The 2013 Lexus ES has earned a five-star crash rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The 2013 ES 350 and ES 300h hybrid earned the highest ratings in each of the government's crash evaluations, including overall driver safety, frontal crashes and overall side impacts, save one. The sedan only achieved a four-star rating in the NHTSA rollover protection test, but that fault wasn't enough to keep the vehicle from earning a five-star designation overall.

The announcement doesn't mention the recent Consumer Reports claim that the ES comes with a faulty emergency trunk release that can be easily broken in a panic situation.

As you may recall, the 2013 ES 350 carries an MSRP of $36,100, plus an $895 destination fee and offers buyers a 268-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 good for 248 pound-feet of torque, as well. The ES 300h, meanwhile, stickers at $38,850 plus the same destination charge.

2013 Lexus ES earns five stars from NHTSA originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 05 Dec 2012 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lexus prices 2013 ES 350 and ES 300h

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 09:29:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hybrid, Sedan, Lexus, Luxury

Lexus has officially slapped a window sticker on its 2013 ES 350 sedan and ES 300h hybrid. Unlike most new car and truck refreshes, this one comes with a bit of a pricing shocker: the 2013 Lexus ES 350 has been priced at $36,100* - a decrease of 1.7 percent compared to the 2012 ES sedan. (Add delivery charges of $895 to all listed prices.)

That asking price will net the driver a 268-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 engine (248 pound-feet of torque) and a six-speed automatic sending power to the front wheels. The EPA estimates that combo is good for 21 miles per gallon city, 31 highway and 24 combined.

Want something a little more... electric? Checking the box for the ES 300h and its 2.5-liter engine/electric motor hybrid combination will run you $2,750 over the base ES. Those $38,850 bring fuel mileage figures of 40 mpg city, 39 mpg highway and 40 mpg combined courtesy of its 200 total horses. Drivers can also engage an EV mode that keeps the gas-powered engine off at low speeds for short distances.

Want to know more about the 2013 ES? Click here for our detailed First Drive report, then scroll down for the official pricing press release.

Continue reading Lexus prices 2013 ES 350 and ES 300h

Lexus prices 2013 ES 350 and ES 300h originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lexus considering building new ES in North America

Scott Burgess — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 09:29:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Plants/Manufacturing, Lexus, Luxury

Lexus dealers are pressuring parent company Toyota to build the new 2013 ES in North America.

According to Ward's Auto, Tim Morrison, vice president of sales and dealer development, admits dealers are clamoring for the ES to be built in North America to help hedge against a strong Japanese yen. The ES, Lexus' top selling sedan in America, is currently built in Kyushu, Japan. But the strong yen has cut into the car's profitability.

Morrison says that the company's North American factory capacity is already limited, but as the brand looks to expand, it will consider finding places to build the ES overseas.

Last year, Lexus sold 41,000 ES sedans, even with the constraints from production problems following the March tsunami. The redesigned 2013 model will include a hybrid version, which Lexus expects to draw new customers.

The ES remains a strong conquest vehicle for Lexus, with 63 percent of ES customers new to the brand, Lexus tells Autoblog. However, only 28 percent stay with the ES once it's time to get a new car.

Last year, Lexus lost its title as America's No. 1 U.S. luxury brand, but officials have said they intend on recapturing it. In 2011, Lexus sold 198,000 vehicles in the U.S., and this year, it hopes to reach 250,000 vehicles.

Lexus considering building new ES in North America originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2013 Lexus ES 350

Steven J. Ewing — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 11:57:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Lexus, First Drives, Luxury

Same As It Ever Was

Toyota really caught us off guard at the 2012 New York Auto Show. While scanning the press materials for the 2013 Avalon, we noticed the word "sporty" was used on quite a few occasions, and the release even talked about foreign-to-the-Avalon concepts like "throttle response," "steering feel" and "paddle shifters." At the time, it appeared that Toyota was actually getting serious about injecting a bit of youth and enthusiasm into its most geriatric-friendly machine.

How is this relevant to the car we're discussing today, the 2013 Lexus ES? For the first time since its debut in 1989, the ES no longer shares its platform with the appliance-for-the-masses Toyota Camry, a vehicle that we recently described as "old and tired," despite being totally new for the 2012 model year. For this new, sixth-generation ES, Lexus has opted to use the platform that also underpins the upcoming Avalon, the same one that piqued our interest at the New York expo.

Lexus itself wants us to believe that this new ES is more athletic. Scan the company's literature and you'll read about the "direct steering feel" and the "sport mode [that] increases powertrain and steering responsiveness." Sure, it sounds like the usual PR mumbo-jumbo, but these sorts of phrases had never appeared in ES press releases before now.

This can't possibly be just another plushy-plush Camry, right?

Continue reading 2013 Lexus ES 350

2013 Lexus ES 350 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 18 Jun 2012 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lexus debuts 2013 ES including new 300h hybrid

Jeff Sabatini — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:55:00 EST

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Hybrid, Sedan, Lexus, Luxury

When the Toyota Camry gets overhauled, like it did this year, you know it's not long before its corporate sister, the Lexus ES, gets revisited as well. And Lexus has done exactly that this afternoon at the New York Auto Show, with the new model doing what the ES does best: Surprise no one.

As expected, the biggest news is the announcement of a hybrid ES, a move that should be the final nail in the coffin of the slow-selling HS 250h. This new hybrid is essentially the Camry hybrid in a nicer package, powered by the same 2.5-liter four-cylinder fitted with the ubiquitous Toyota hybrid system. As it does in the hybrid GS, Lexus will offer a sport drive mode, as well as an EV mode. Lexus estimates that the ES hybrid will have 40-mile-per-gallon combined fuel economy, matching that of the Camry Hybrid XLE (a number that presumably will give it best-in-class bragging rights).

The ES gets the new Lexus spindle grille treatment and a 1.8-inch longer wheelbase, but changes to the sheetmetal aren't as dramatic as the upgraded cabin. The instrument panel now resembles the one in the GS, with a horizontal treatment and a big LCD screen, along with the love/hate Lexus Remote Touch Interface controller snuggling next to the gearshift in the center console. New seats boast a leather-alternative NuLuxe covering, although real hide is also available, along with premium semi-aniline leather. Somehow, Lexus has even managed to find an extra four inches of legroom up front.

The ES 350 will still mate Toyota's proven 3.5-liter V6 with a six-speed automatic, driving the front wheels. But Lexus says it's modified the suspension and steering in this generation of ES to improve handling - and it's even cut the curb weight of the 2013 ES by 90 pounds.

Click past the jump to read the full press release.

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Lexus debuts 2013 ES including new 300h hybrid originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 13:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2013 Lexus ES teased ahead of New York debut

Steven J. Ewing — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:57:00 EST

Filed under: New York Auto Show, Sedan, Lexus, Luxury

Lexus has released this teaser image of the 2013 ES sedan, and - surprise, surprise - it shows off the spindle grille and LED running lamps found on each and every one of the automaker's vehicles. More to the point, it looks exactly like what we saw in a set of Chinese spy shots that we posted last month, so really, there isn't much left for us to speculate on in terms of design.

The Camry-based Lexus mid-sizer will likely debut in ES 350 guise, powered by Toyota's tried-and-true 3.5-liter V6. And while, historically, there's only been one engine offered in the ES range, rumor has it that this sixth-generation model may gain a hybrid variant with a version of the Camry Hybrid's gasoline-electric powertrain. Regardless, Lexus states that the new ES will feature "a new dynamic driving experience." We'll see about that.

Inside, expect a host of updates similar to what we've seen on the GS sedan, including a larger infotainment display screen and mouse-like controller, as well as the addition of Lexus Enform. We'll have the full details next week live from New York, so stay tuned. For now, hit the jump for the automaker's brief press blast.

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2013 Lexus ES teased ahead of New York debut originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NHTSA proposing panic stop system for keyless ignition

Jeff Sabatini — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 07:57:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Technology, Lexus, Toyota

In the wake of the heavily publicized fatal crash involving a Lexus ES 350 with keyless ignition in California, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is proposing standardizing keyless ignition systems. The government regulator wants all vehicles with keyless ignition to turn off after a button press of just half a second, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The proposal states that among the concerns are "drivers' inability to stop a moving vehicle in a panic situation," according to the report. That's what happened in the Lexus crash that killed four people in 2009, in which a three-second button press was necessary to turn off the engine, according to Bloomberg. The incident was one of many that led to recalls of Toyota vehicles in 2009 and 2010.

Automakers have already discussed standardizing their keyless ignition systems, according to an Alliance of Automotive Manufacturers spokeswoman. The half-second delay falls within a range recommended by the Society of Automotive Engineers.

While this new regulation is clearly a good thing, we do wonder what was wrong with just using keys?

NHTSA proposing panic stop system for keyless ignition originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 12 Dec 2011 07:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Review: 2010 Lexus ES 350 is soft-riding royalty that's lost its crown

Chris Shunk — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:58:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Lexus, New Car Reviews, Luxury

2010 Lexus ES 350 - Click above for high-res image gallery

The entry-level luxury sedan segment doesn't command the enthusiast attention of, say, the ultra-premium luxury sports sedan. But if you ask automakers to choose between the two, we'd wager that most would rather have a best-in-class $35,000 sedan than a world-beating $70,000 sports tourer.

The reason? Very few fortunes are made selling a few thousand highfalutin' rocket launchers, but bottom lines can easily be bolstered or crippled based on the success or failure of a plush, high-volume cruiser. Luxury marques from Acura to Volvo have experienced varied levels of success at the low end of the luxury market, but few have enjoyed the consistent sales dominance of the Lexus ES. In the past decade, Toyota has cranked out over 600,000 copies in the U.S. alone, with another 650,000 units shipped around the world. And those sales have traditionally been overwhelmingly of the retail variety with little or no incentives. Not bad for what many consider a glorified Toyota Camry.

Enthusiasts take note: Lexus didn't reach such lofty sales levels with a rear-wheel-drive architecture or pavement-punishing quantities of horsepower. The road map to success for the ES has been simple: a soft, compliant ride; a pampering interior; and unmatched quality. The fifth-generation ES350 has built nicely on those attributes with smoother power, a quieter cabin and more technology. But the competition is still striving to overtake the ES in sales, so Lexus has gone and given its top-selling sedan a mid-cycle refresh for 2010. We spent a week in a Starfire Pearl ES350 to see if it still had the goods to remain a top option in the entry-level luxury segment.

Gallery: Review: 2010 Lexus ES 350

Continue reading Review: 2010 Lexus ES 350 is soft-riding royalty that's lost its crown

Review: 2010 Lexus ES 350 is soft-riding royalty that's lost its crown originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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